Sheltering Arms Children and Family Services

Early childhood education programs-for over three decades, Sheltering Arms has provided high quality early childhood education (ece) Services through both home- and center-based options. Currently we run seven center based programs serving about 600 Children annually. Infants and toddlers up to 4 years of age receive home- or center-based care. In home-based care, home visitors work with Children and their parents, who also attend weekly socialization groups with other same-age Children. Parents are offered various educational workshops, including prenatal and postnatal care, nutrition, and comprehensive Family support Services. Our dedicated educators guide Children through hands-on learning activities and a constantly growing set of innovations, such as mental health support and exposure to the arts. Our model is informed by the nationally recognized creative curriculum, which ensures that Children gain the early literacy, math, and cognitive skills they will need to succeed in kindergarten and beyond.

Juvenile justice programssheltering Arms runs eight juvenile justice residential programs for teens charged with criminal offenses. Under contracts with the nyc administration for Children's Services (acs), our three non-secure detention (nsd) programs serve teens in residential settings who are awaiting juvenile delinquency proceedings in Family court. These youth are closely supervised, attend school, and receive counseling during their short stay in a Sheltering Arms group residence. Our four non-secure placement (nsp) programs serve teens who have been convicted in Family court of a criminal offense and sentenced to serve terms of 12 to 18 months. We have one limited secure placement (lsp) program, that specializes in serving youth diagnosed as severely emotionally disturbed. Youth in nsp and lsp residences are closely supervised and also receive education and counseling. Sheltering Arms utilizes non-traditional solutions to meet the city's need for comprehensive and effective youth rehabilitation. From implementing a groundbreaking creative arts therapy program to nationally recognized models for treating mental health, we are transforming the way juvenile justice programming is operated.

Family foster care, adoption and foster care group homes for teens -Sheltering Arms provides foster homes for approximately 250 Children whose birth families are unable to care for them because of such problems as drug/alcohol use, anger management issues, unsafe housing, poor parenting skills, or domestic violence. They are placed with approximately 200 families recruited and trained by Sheltering Arms, while their birth families are helped to deal with the problems that led to placement. In most cases, Children are able to be safely reunited with their parents; others will be adopted by their foster families, relatives, or others.learning to live cooperatively with others and develop the skills needed to be self-sufficient is the goal of the two Sheltering Arms group homes for foster youth in the bronx. Staff members provide surrogate parenting in the group homes, helping the residents organize meal preparation, the assignment of chores, and oversee things like homework review and discipline. Academic achievement, college preparation, and job readiness skills are emphasized for all youth, while local workshops broaden residents' perspectives and life coping skills. Sheltering Arms offers critical support to teens in foster care, both those living with foster families and those living in the group homes, during their often difficult transition to adulthood. Through partnerships with nationally recognized foundations, we close the gaps left by past abuse or neglect, and restore the self-esteem that fuels, personal development, and success.

Other programs include:foster care reception centerthe Sheltering Arms reception center is a pre-placement setting for 15 Children ages 0-12 awaiting identification of appropriate foster home placement. We provide 24 hour social work and health care for these Children, supervise visits with their families and transport the school-age Children to and from school.developmental disability servicessheltering Arms operates six residences for developmentally disabled adults, serving more than 60 adults each year. Supervised by experienced and caring staff, we provide person-centered support focused on improving skills, and maintaining physical and emotional well-being. The residents work on independent living goals established individually for each person. In addition, Sheltering Arms has two day habilitation programs that provide work-like activities and excursions for individuals living in our group residences, and those living with other agencies. Afterschool and community school programssheltering Arms' afterschool programs serve more than 3,000 students in ten public elementary and middle schools each year. Our programs unlock student potential by providing a safe environment for Children to develop away from the negative influences on their streets. Our unique combination of project-based learning, character development, and eye-opening opportunities puts at-risk Children on track to success. We operate programs in four elementary schools, five middle schools, and we were selected to provide the city's first afterschool program specifically designated for youth in the juvenile justice system at bronx hope passages academy. We are also the lead provider at jhs 22, a community school, providing comprehensive wrap-around Services for students and their families, including physical and mental health Services, a food pantry, adult literacy classes, and much more.preventive servicesfamilies referred to our preventive programs may be afflicted by homelessness, violence, mental illness, substance abuse, extreme poverty, trauma, or other factors that put their Children at risk for foster care placement. We prioritize the safety and health of the Children in our program while working with parents to heal and strengthen Family bonds through targeted therapy, referrals, home visits, and parenting classes. Offering evidence based models, outcomes-focused research informs our methodology and leads to successful transformations for vulnerable Children and families.runaway and homeless youth (rhy) servicessheltering Arms runs two drop-in youth centers, one in far rockaway and one in jamaica, for homeless young people. The jamaica drop-in center offers limited overnight stays for approximately 20 youth waiting to be referred to a crisis residence. We also run a crisis residence and two transitional independent living (til) residences. With Sheltering Arms, young people find a refuge from the challenges they face coming of age in low-income neighborhoods - from homelessness to gang violence and limited job opportunities. Our 'safe space drop-in youth centers and 24/7 residences are secure places to build strong relationships with staff and peers, to get help with school work, to gain referrals for food or housing and other basic needs, and to develop skills and build pathways for career success.new home/rapid re-housing programwe are proud to be among the first in nyc to provide federally funded rapid re-housing for youth ages 21-24, serving as a bridge to independence and self-sufficiency. Our new home program provides rental support for an apartment in the youth's name, paired with case management and light-touch support to help youth gain increasing independence over the course of a year. Currently we have 55 youth living in their own apartments.jamaica community partnershipour jamaica community partnership program works collaboratively with partner agencies, organizations, and community members to connect families living in jamaica, queens to information, Services, resources, and community support aimed at strengthening Family functioning and addressing issues that matter to our community, such as youth employment and engagement opportunities. Rock safe streets (cure violence) we were one of the first agencies called upon by nyc to implement the nationally-recognized cure violence model in far rockaway, queens. Cure violence is an evidence-proven public health model for "interrupting" gun violence which was developed in chicago's gang-prone neighborhoods. Like the violence interrupters in chicago, our rock safe streets staff leverage their credibility to effectively de-escalate conflict and build community momentum toward peace and economic development. We stand with the entire far rockaway community to heal our neighborhoods and reclaim our streets for safer futures.clinical mental health servicessheltering Arms takes a non-traditional approach to meeting families where they are with the mental health Services they need most. We use evidence based models such as child parent psychotherapy and mental health treatment "best practices" which have changed lives. Our three nys doh article 31 mental health clinics are integrated within our Family resource centers where youth and families regularly visit for events, education, resources, and other programs. We are also pioneers of school-based mental health care. Our kidwise program embeds mental health care professionals in low-income elementary and middle schools where they can reach underserved Children and their families despite language barriers, stigma, or knowledge gaps.juvenile justice/foster care health clinicsheltering Arms has a full-service licensed health clinic in the bronx that receives medicaid reimbursement for health care Services provided to the Children in our foster care and juvenile justice residential programs.maternal child health / healthy familieshealthy families jamaica provides intensive home visiting Services for pregnant and parenting families in jamaica, queens in order to prevent child abuse and neglect; promote positive parenting skills and parent-child interaction; ensure optimal prenatal care and child health and development; and enhance Family functioning by reducing risk and building protective factors.medicaid redesign servicesnew york state's redesign of the medicaid system prioritizes care coordination and removing barriers to care. Sheltering Arms provides care management for medicaid eligible Children with a qualifying health or mental health challenge. The care management goals are to help the child and caregiver be proactive and engaged in reaching their full health potential; reducing unnecessary emergency department visits and inpatient stays; and sharing health records among providers so that Services are not duplicated or neglected. We also provide in-home Children and Family treatment and support (cfts) mental health Services to Children and families struggling with mental and emotional health challenges.